Who Is Selling Government Workers' Data To The Loan Institutions?

Do our laws in this country only wake up when the damage is already done? It is worrying that immediately someone begins work and receives a salary through the Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD), messages start flooding their phone from faceless companies offering “quick loans.” The question is: why are these messages not sent to traders, farmers, or the self-employed, but only to government workers?

The Data Protection Commission has been asleep at the wheel. Ghana’s Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843) is clear: non-compliance attracts civil liability, criminal sanctions, or both, depending on the infraction. Section 40 even prohibits the use of personal data for direct marketing. Yet, companies continue to bombard workers with unsolicited “loan offers” without consequence. Where do they get the names and phone numbers of government employees? Perhaps the Commission is waiting for a “landmark case” before acting, the classic Ghanaian way of doing things.

The uncomfortable truth is that only three sources could be leaking this information: teachers’ unions, the accounts departments of government institutions, and the CAGD itself. All three have access to workers’ details. If confidentiality were being observed, these unlawful messages would not exist.

This constant harassment is not just irritating; it exposes government workers to scams. Many of these so-called loan companies are fraudsters who lure desperate workers with promises of “instant loans,” only to dupe them. Workers who might genuinely need loans are sometimes driven into their traps because of the frustrating bureaucratic bottlenecks of legitimate institutions. But the bigger issue remains: who leaks their details in the first place?

Ghana has beautiful laws that often remain on paper. In modern governance, confidentiality is non-negotiable, it builds trust and credibility. Yet, in Ghana, the very institutions entrusted to safeguard employees’ data appear complicit in selling them out to crooks.

If the Data Protection Act is to mean anything, it must begin to bite. The CAGD, workers’ unions, especially the teachers', and institutional accountants must be held accountable if found culpable. Protecting workers’ information is not a favour, it is their legal and moral obligation. Government employees, who already take home meagre salaries, should not have their peace of mind stolen by fraudsters emboldened by reckless data leaks. The time to act is now. Enough of the negligence.

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